Fastening device.



No. 815,561 v I -1ATENTBD MAR. 20, 1906. w... P. SMITHEM. I FASTENING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 13,1605.

mm'ssas W I IIINYEIIVTUR 2 )fil/z'am Pmz'z%em BY I ATTORNEYS ILLIAM PETER SMITHEM. OF oEYsTAL uN, NEw YORK.

FASTENING-DEVICE- i f No.815 ,5611.

Specification ofLetters eaten. I Patented Mae. so, 1906.

Applicationfiled September 13,1905- Serial No.2'78,218.

,To all whom 'it'may concern: I

Be it known that I, WILLIAM PETER SMITH- EM, a citizen of the United States, residingat -Orystalrun, in the county of Orange and State 5 of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fastening Devices,

of which the following is a specification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which I it appertains to make and use the same. I This invention relates to fastening devices; and the object thereof is to provide improved devices of this class which are particularly 'designed'for use in connection with shoes and I other articles of apparelsuch as corsets,

I gloves, and the likebut which may also be used in connection with belts and for various other purposes.

The invention-is fully disclosed in the following specification, of which the accompazo nying' drawings form a part, in which the separate parts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference characters in each of 'the views, and in which- Figure 1 is a front view of'a shoe provided with my improved fastening device or devices; Fig. 2, a plan view showing my improvement applied for the purpose of connecting the ends of a belt or similar article; Fig. 3, a section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2, but on an enlarged scale; and Fig.4, a section on the1line4 4 of Fig. '1 and also on an enlarged soa e.

In the drawings forming part of this specification, reference being made to Fig. 1, I

have shown my fastening device or devices applied to a shoe,-and the shoe shown in the drawings is a low cutshoetof the Blucher type and provided with front flaps or flies a. In the practice of my invention, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, I secure to the edges of the flaps or flies a and between the separate parts of said edges, said'flaps or flies being usually made double or composed of outer and inner 'parts, keepers b. The keepers b are oblong 5 1n form and composed of sheet-metal strips folded centrally, as shown at b in Fig. 4, to form outer and inner members I)" and 6 separated to form jaws between which is a narrow slot or opening b the inner jaw 6 being flat and smooth throughout its length, while the outer jaw b is raised andcurved,-so as to form a space I), which is substantially wedgeshaped 1n form, and the end of the jaw 12 is preferably curved outwardly and. upwardly and backwardly, as shown at 6 sozas to hold it is desired to unfasten the shoe.

the outer material 12 of the corresponding flap or fly, while the lower jaw b at its end is curved downwardly or inwardly and backwardly, as shown at 6 in order to hold the inner thickness of the flap or fly, between the '60 parts of which the said keepers are placed.

The keepers b may'be secured between theseparate parts of the flaps or flies a in any desired manner, and in connection with said kee ers I employ a strip or tongue 0, which is s rghtly wider at one end than at the other, and theedgesof which are provided with beads, folds, or thickened members 0 which are also substantially wedge-shaped in crosssection in the form of construction shown and which in the form of construction shown are formed by folding the edges of-the strip or tongue 0; but the thickened or beaded edge portion of the strip or tongue 0 may be formed in any desired manner. Whenever it is desired to fasten the shoe, the wider end a of thestrip or tongue 0 is held so that the ends c of the side beads orthickened portions 0 of saidstrip or tongue will pass into the bot- I tom keepers b at c in Fig. 1, and the strip or tongue 0 is pulled upwardly into the position shown insaid figure, and in this operation the beads or folds c pass through all the keepers b'onithe opposite side edges of theflaps or -flies'a, and the said flaps or flies are 'connect- 'ed. Thelower end of the strip or tongue c is-also preferably provided with a transverse roll, bead, or thickened portion 0 which serves as a stop to prevent the strip or tongue c from being drawn upwardly too far and also 0 to facilitate the downward movement of said strip or tongue or the operation of pulling the said strlp or tongue downwardly when When it is desired to unfasten the shoe or take it off, 5 the strip or tongue 0 is pulled downwardly about two-thirds of its length, and the shoe then may be easily removed from the foot, and inorder to fasten the shoe after it has been pulled 'onto the foot all that is neces- Ioo sary'is to pull the strip or tongue 0 into the position shown in Fig. 1. Any suitable means may beprovided, if desired, to hold the strip or tongue 0 in its uppermost position or in the last-named position but as a general thing r05 no extra devices for this purpose will be re* quired, as friction alone will be suflicient to retain the strip or tongue 0 in its normal or operative position.

v The particular shape of the keepers b in lon- 1 1'0 gitudinal section as shown in Fig. 4is preferably adaptedin order to make the bottom jaw or member If substantially flat, so that it Will not interfere with the instep, and the separate jaws b and b may be made independently (see Fig. 3) and may be secured together to form the shank or projecting member d, which in the form of construction shown is formed by folding a single strip of metal, as at 5 and one of the features of the invention consists in placing the slots or openings b in the keepers 1) parallel with and flush with the inner side of the bottom or inner jaws b of said keepers, so that the enlarged or protruding portion of said jaws and the corresponding side edges of the bead or strip 0 will extend outwardly from the instep when the fastening device or devices are in operation.

The keepers b have small transverse dimensions, and this renders the flaps or flies ofthe shoe, or the shoe over the instep when the shoe is in use, more flexible and prevents my improved fastening device from interfering with the use of the shoe.

In Figs. 2 and 3 I have shown my improvement applied for the purpose of connecting the two ends of a belt 0. In this illustration of the operation or use of my improved fastening device or devices the keepers b are not covered; but the shanks d thereof are secured to the ends of the belt 6 and the strip or tongue 0 is used in the same manner as in Figs. 1 and 4, and with this exception the construction shown in Figs. 2 and 3 is the same as that shown in Figs. 1 and 4. It will be understood, however, that the keepers b shown in Figs. 2 and 3 may be covered, if desired, and it is not absolutely essential that the keepers shown in Figs. 1 and 4 be covered, as it will be apparent that in some cases, and espe cially in the cheaper grade of shoes, these keepers may be exposed, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

My improved fastening device may be ap plied for various other purposes in addition to devices herein shown and described.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The herein-described fastening devices designed for connecting the ends or edges of flexible articles consisting of keepers secured to said ends or edges, said keepers bein of small transverse dimensions and flat on t ieir inner sides and outwardly curved on their outer sides, and being provided with slots or openings parallel with and flush with their inner sides, and a flexible strip or tongue provided with thickened or beaded edges adapted to be drawn through said keepers, the said strip or tongue being tapered from one end to the other, substantially as shown and described.

2. The herein-described fastening devices designed for connecting the ends or edges of flexible articles, consisting of keepers secured to said ends or edges, said keepers being composed of a narrow strip of metal folded transversely and being of small transverse dimensions and flat on their inner sides and outwardly curved on their outer sides, and being provided with openings parallel with and flush with their inner sides at the end thereof, and a flexible strip or tongue the edges of which are thickened on the outer side thereof and adapted to be drawn through said keepers, said strip or tongue being tapered from one end to the other, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name, in presence of the subscribing Witnesses, this 9th day of September, 1905.

\VILLIAM PETER SMITI-IEM.

IVitnesses HERBERT B. RoYeE, JOHN G. WILKIN. 

